The Jessye Norman School of the Arts is pleased to announce the unveiling of a new painted piano at the Georgia Cyber Center on January 10th, 2023 in downtown Augusta. The partnership to create and display the piano will affirm the positive impact of and commitment to music and art in our community. The piano will be located in the lobby of the Shaffer MacCartney Building at 200 Grace Hopper Lane.

The piano art was created by visual artist, author, and teacher Staci Swider. Staci’s work is displayed in galleries throughout the region. Staci began her art career as a textile designer in the home furnishings industry and today her work "reinterprets the patterns and textures found in function-driven objects such as quilts and baskets as dreamscape imagery that straddles the line between figurative and abstract.” Staci is a juried member of the National Association of Women Artists, and a certified Golden Artist Educator. Her book, Acrylic Expressions, and 4 instructional painting videos are available through Random House Publishing and their retailers. She is a long-time, active, and engaged member of the CSRA community.

The Georgia Cyber Center was created with the mission to cultivate an ecosystem where the combined talent of government, academia, and private industry delivers affordable and relevant cybersecurity, training and education, develops the state's cybersecurity workforce, solves complex cybersecurity challenges, and offers unbiased advice to policy-makers in order to provide our state and the nation with a decisive advantage in cyberspace.

Turner Keyboards is this community!s local and reliable source for pianos since 1955. They offer a variety of piano- related services, including moving, tuning, and repair. Turner Keyboards has a long and storied history of supporting the arts in the CSRA. Owner, Lisa Turner Maddox jumped at the opportunity to support this latest project.

Other painted piano locations include at The Hyatt House Downtown, The Miller Theater, The Book Tavern (Sponsored by Turner Keyboards), Augusta and Co., and Doctor’s Hospital.

The Mission of the Jessye Norman School of the Arts is to improve the quality of life for the communities we serve through the transformative power of the arts. The Piano Project has become a vehicle for connecting businesses, non-profits, artists, and for providing students clear examples of how art happens and how it can impact the community in which they live.

If you would like further information about the Piano Project, to suggest a location, or to sponsor a piano, please email Gary Dennis at [email protected] or call (706) 814-0665.